


Dancing Cheek to Cheek

by LightningLemonade



Series: A Mathematician With A Microphone [3]
Category: Pacific Rim (Movies)
Genre: Dancing, Electro Swing, F/F, Family Drama, Gen, Lars ruins most things, Mother-Son Relationship, Trans Character, Trans Male Character, TransMale!Hermann, Wedding Fluff, Wedding Reception
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-25
Updated: 2018-03-25
Packaged: 2019-04-08 04:11:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 901
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14096925
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LightningLemonade/pseuds/LightningLemonade
Summary: Newt's music player drifted to electro swing. It brought back bittersweet memories for Hermann.





	Dancing Cheek to Cheek

**Author's Note:**

> Guess who saw Pacific Rim: Uprising and got reinspired to write fanfiction again?
> 
> This guyyyyyy. And the Mathematician With A Microphone AU dragged me back in very quickly.
> 
> I might even resume "I Have Only But A Million Blemishes To Tell You All About"
> 
> Anyway have something semi-adorable.

_I'm in heaven...I'm in heaven..._

The cheery, 40's era singer backed by electro-mixed old tunes made Hermann quirk an eyebrow to his erratic lab partner, elbow deep into a Kaiju carcass. 

"Your dire musical taste lurched into something with some element of class, I'm genuninely surprised." Hermann commented, his tone somewhere between pleased and sarcasm. Newt stuck his tongue out in sheer habit, then retreated it before accidentally licking kaiju corpse. 

Hermann looked back at his enormous chalkboards, his focus sliding from his beloved numbers and drifting back to 2013, days before Trespasser made itself known to the world. Specifically, back to his sister's wedding.

\- - - -

"Don't they look wonderful?" murmured Anna Gottlieb, her eyes tracking the newly proclaimed Mrs and Mrs Gottlieb-Hadley as they energetically did a mix of ballroom and swing dancing to an electro-swing mix of _Dancing Cheek to Cheek_ , both women beaming and laughing as their skirts billowed and flowed around their movements.  
Hermann, stood near his mother, made a non-committal but soft "mmhm" in response. It had been six years since he saw either of his parents, and the first time they'd seen him in his correct presentation. Lars barely aknowledged Hermann, which was fine by him, but Anna kept looking at him with a mix of sadness and pride - a combination Hermann was only half expecting.

Mother and son continued to sit in silence, watching the brides making their way around the dance floor, until Anna broke the quiet between them.

"Are you...happy? As this...you?"

Hermann didn't even have to contemplate his answer. "Absolutely."

"Then that's all I need. Your father can't handle the idea of you being anything other than what he envisioned for you, but that's him."  
Hermann grimaced at mention of his other parent, who happened to be in deep conversation with one of Vanessa's work friends and thankfully not with earshot.  
"I hope though, after seeing you so comfortable as...this, your father'll come round to the idea." Anna surged ahead. Hermann had to hold back a snort of derisive laughter.

"If he remembered my name and wasn't trying to stuff me back into a skirt." sniped Hermann. Any reply Anna had was stopped by the bitterness in Hermann's voice and thankfully, by the arrival of his sisters.

"Hermann! I'm hijacking you for a dance, I hope you don't mind Mrs Gottlieb!" and without waiting for permission, Vanessa pulled Hermann out of his seat and dragged him to the dance floor.

"I saw you getting pretty pissed off, was I wrong to get you out of there?" Vanessa looked worried as she arranged hers and Hermann's hands into the right locations for the dance.  
"No, no. You got me out at the right time." Hermann smiled at his new sister, pleased that even now as adults, Vanessa still has his back.  
Another electro swing number was playing, fast and energetic. They start dancing, Hermann glad that Vanessa took him to her Lindy Hop group a few times before the wedding to give him an _idea_ on how to dance other than jumping around in a mosh pit.

"I wish Karla'd stop trying to please your wankstain dad." Vanessa sighed, watching her wife talking to her father. Even from this distance, Karla's frustration and Lars' obstinance were as plain as day, though thankfully not audible.

"It's less 'please' and more 'compromise for mother's sake'." Hermann sighed, turning himself and Vanessa around - as part of the dance and in an attempt to ignore the potential family fallout.

"At least you and Dietrich had the right idea." Vanessa remarks, her eyes seeking out the elusive eldest Gottlieb, who happens to be engrossed in conversation with Bastien, conveniently as far away as possible from Lars.

Hermann lapsed into silence, trying to focus on the more complicated steps and not trip over either his own feet or worse, Vanessa's. As the dance wound down, Vanessa brought Hermann into a tight hug.

"We'll always be family. You, me, Karla." Vanessa whispered to her new and favourite brother, before they parted ways to rejoin the rest of the party.

\- - - - 

Hermann's focus returned to the present, the bizarre smell of rotting kaiju flesh, chalk dust and the dusty heat of always-on computers that pervaded the lab for eternity anchoring him back to the here and now. Newt had abandoned his filthy work and was stood near the zoned out mathematician waving a steaming hot mug of tea near Hermann's face.

"Sorry, Newton, what were you saying?" Hermann looked at his lab partner, wondering how long he'd been there.

"Take a damn break, you've been staring at your stupid chalkboard not doing anything for like five minutes!" Newt placed the mug on the nearest desk and firmly guided Hermann to the accompanying chair. 

"Sit. Drink." Hermann did as he was told without complaint, his mind still very much elsewhere.

While he drank the extremely strong Earl Grey Newt had made for him, Hermann fired up his personal email and started on a message to his sisters. Vanessa back then was more right than she knew - of the Gottlieb siblings, Dietrich had vanished yet again - though this time suspected dead, Bastien barely stayed in contact with anyone, Lars was Lars, and their mother stayed by their father, regrettably.

But that was fine. Vanessa and Karla were all the family he needed.

Maybe Newton, but he wouldn't necessarily _admit_ that.

**Author's Note:**

> The song that sparks Hermann's memory/was Vanessa and Karla's first dance song is this electro swing version of 'Dancing Cheek to Cheek' - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGNg4cmyGow
> 
> Unbeta'd, written in a couple of hours. All written while listening to this electro swing mix: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPMTZfNSXYQ


End file.
